


honey, you talk too much.

by tinybluewitch (madandimpossible)



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, F/M, First Kiss, Fluff, Freaks and Geeks AU, ITS ABOUT THE YEARNING AS ALWAYS, Mutual Pining, POV Jester Lavorre, POV Third Person, Secret Crush, Underage Drinking, Underage Smoking, other ships are minor but still There
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-17 09:07:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 11,891
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29469198
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/madandimpossible/pseuds/tinybluewitch
Summary: When Jester Lavorre started hanging out with the so-called "Freaks" - she never expected her life to change this much. Her final homecoming dance, a new kid with a Zeminian accent, a rancourous house party, and a sudden road trip.That's what senior year is about, right? (a Freaks & Geeks inspired AU mini-fic.)
Relationships: Beauregard Lionett/Yasha, Fjord/Nott | Veth Brenatto, Jester Lavorre/Caleb Widogast
Comments: 10
Kudos: 58





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I dunno, anytime I consume media, my brain goes "make it widojest brrrrr."
> 
> No warnings on this chapter, but the second chapter will have underage drinking/smoking!

* * *

**_Nicodranas Highschool – Home of the Tridents_ **

Jester shook Veth’s shoulder as she sat down on the picnic tables littered throughout the patio. The smell of nicotine and weed clung to the warm, August air. The entire morning buzzed with nervous energy as the students scrambled to find dates for the upcoming Harvest’s End dance. Not that Jester was concerned. She, Yasha, and Veth all agreed to go together. _Without_ dates. Why ruin a perfectly good dance by dragging a dumb boy along?

Jester laid out her sketchbook and gave a smile over to Yasha. She sat with her back against the reddish, clay wall, her knees pulled to her chest, engaged in conversation with Beauregard. Her black lips twitched with a small smile back to Jester. Their friend group was missing Caduceus, but he had a habit of strolling into school after second period. And with his baggy clothes and dyed pink hair – he was hard to miss – and if you couldn’t find Caduceus, then you could just track down _any_ of his siblings. They usually knew where he wandered off to.

“Are you alive?” Jester asked.

Veth gave a noncommittal groan in response. Her head did not lift from the wood marred with scratches of curse words and classmate initials.

Beauregard tossed a football in the air and caught it, “She’s not hungover. She’s just regretting all her life choices.”

“Fuck off, Beau.” Veth mumbled her reply.

Jester rubbed Veth’s shoulder, her tone empathetic, “I can make some terrible decisions before my English class. Then we can wallow in regret together!”

Gods, she _hated_ seeing her friends upset. Veth wasn’t the type to mope. She lifted both middle fingers to the world and did it with a glorious smile.

Veth lifted her head slowly, but her eyes were on the table. She idly traced the grooves in the wood, her bracelets clicking together, and her lips pursed. Jester doodled a cupcake onto her sketchbook page and waited, only half-listening to Beau and Yasha’s conversation as they discussed their Botany teacher.

“I asked someone to the dance.” Veth threw her head back with a heavy sigh, “I asked the new kid.”

Jester’s eyes went wide, “There’s a new kid?! Who is he?”

Veth waved her hands in front of her face, “It doesn’t matter! He said –“ She lowered her voice, mimicking a kind-of Zemnian accent – “ _I’m sorry, I have been asked to work the refreshments table_.”

She plopped her head back to the table, “I should’ve known. He’s _too_ _hot_. He’s entirely out of my league.”

“Veth, that’s not a _no_.” Jester said, “It sounds more like he’s just going to be busy.” She poked her tongue against her front fang.

“OH!” She bounced up in her seat, “I _know_! What if I volunteer to work the refreshment table and then I can give him a break and then **_you_** ask him for a dance!”

“That’s not a bad idea, Jessie.” Beau chimed in with a shrug.

Veth blinked, glancing at her friends, “You’d do that? But you…” She twisted the end of one of her twin braids, “You _love_ dancing.”

Jester started packing away her colored pencils, “I’m sure I’ll get a dance in.”

The bell chimed and the sound of shuffling feet, dragging backpacks, and students calling out goodbyes to one another created too much noise for Jester to continue her conversation. She smiled at Veth, at the new rosy color to her cheeks, and slung her bright, pink backpack over her shoulder.

“See you in class!” She called out to her friends as she hurried down the hall.

xXx

Jester pulled out her weathered school-copy of _Frankenstein_ , setting it on her desk with her glittered, unicorn notebook, while the second bell chimed and the last of the students came straggling into the room. This was her _least_ favorite class. Not because the teacher was bad! She _loved_ Miss Nila. She was super cool, wore really funky patchwork dresses, and didn’t mind giving extensions on homework assignments.

It just – this was her only class without any of her friends and Miss Nila always had them reading boring, classical works. Jester wanted to read something exciting. Like the novels her Mama kept in her study. None of the novels or plays they read had any romance – except for the time they read Romeo and Juliet last year – but that story ended up being depressing. What was the point of a story if it didn’t have a happy ending?

Miss Nila clapped her hands to get everyone’s attention, her voice soft and sweet, “I’d like to introduce a new student. He’s transferred to us all the way from Blumenthal – please welcome Caleb Widogast.”

Jester’s head perked up. He shuffled into the room with his books clasped to his chest like a shield. He nearly looked like a teacher himself with his white button-down Oxford, khaki pants, and shiny brown shoes. Jester tilted her head. Veth called him ‘ _hot’_. She didn’t see it. Maybe he could be considered ‘ _hot’_ in a nerdy, bookish kind of way. That tended to be Veth’s type considering she had gone out with Yeza for almost two years. 

“H-hello.” Caleb’s voice had a much stronger accent than the one Veth mimicked. His eyes remained glued to the shiny, linoleum floor. Miss Nila instructed him to sit wherever he liked, and Jester watched as Caleb picked a seat near the windows and meticulously began removing his supplies from his brown, leather over-the-shoulder bag and setting them carefully onto his desk.

The late morning sun framed his head in a golden backlight and Jester pulled her gaze away.

“Now, let’s resume our discussion of chapter four and five.” Miss Nila said as she turned around and began writing on the chalkboard. Jester mentally kept one foot in the classroom, while the other was on the sandy beaches of Nicodranas, celebrating the last few days of summer. The feeling of warm sunshine, the saltwater splashing against her knees, the sound of Veth’s cackling laughter roaring like the waves.

She drew a little seashell on her page. The minutes ticked by in agonizing slowness as the class volleyed with discussion. She drew a conch shell and little crab crawling out of it.

The sound of chairs scraping against the floor snapped her back to attention.

“Caleb, why don’t you pair up with Jester?” Miss. Nila said with her signature, soft smile. She made an open-palmed gesture over to Jester’s desk. Caleb’s head bobbed and he slowly came over, sliding into the desk beside Jester, with a timid smile thrown in her direction.

He cleared his throat, “Between you and I – I’ve read this book already.” He said the words quietly, his blue eyes glancing sidelong over to Miss. Nila who had returned to her desk. 

Jester lit up with a megawatt smile, “So, you know all the answers?”

“Ja –“ He coughed, “Yes. Probably.”

She turned to a fresh, non-doodled page of her notebook. They worked together on the assignment, with Jester reading passages from the chapters they were assigned, and Caleb taking notes. And for the first time – Jester found herself enjoying reading boring classical literature.

When she lifted her eyes, Caleb was thumbing the dog-eared corner of his book while his other hand finished their notes. Jester caught her lower lip between her teeth. Up close – she could see a dusting of freckles across the bridge of his nose, the heavy furrow of his brows, and the way his auburn hair curled behind his ears. _Is he hot?_ She noticed the dimple on his chin.

That was _cute_. But it wasn’t _hot_.

“There.” He slid the paper over to Jester. His handwriting was small and neat, and he didn’t use the margins for artwork. Jester rectified that immediately by drawing several vines clawing along the blue margin line with large leaves and varied flora. She could feel Caleb’s eyes on her.

“You are quite good at that.”

“Hm?” Jester shrugged, “Yeah, I’ve been drawing ever since I was little.”

“Miss Nila won’t mind?”

She caught the edge of his smile when she looked up, but Caleb turned his face away.

“She’ll say _something_.” Jester finished adding the final petals to a large rose at the corner, “Like – Jester – this is not art class. But she doesn’t reduce my grade if that’s what you’re asking.” Once finished and satisfied with her work, she slid the paper back to Caleb.

“I heard you’re going to be at the dance.”

He nodded, drumming his fingers against the cover of his book, “Yes. Principal Leylas thought it would be a good opportunity for me to get to know the rest of the students…”

She wrinkled her nose at that.

“Wouldn’t it be better if you just got to know people in class?”

“Not everyone is as nice as you, Miss Lavorre.”

Jester smiled, “My friends are nice too, you know.” She thought of Veth, the gears in her mind turning, “You should come find us in the morning. We can hang out! Or – Or – come sit with us at lunch today!”

His thumb nail scratched against tape that was stuck to the desk, “Perhaps.”

The first bell rang out, cutting any further conversation short, and Caleb pushed his desk away and collected his things. Jester beamed, a giddiness swelling in her stomach, as she considered that English wouldn’t be _so_ bad now that Caleb shared the class with her.

Miss. Nila stood by her desk, saying goodbye to each student as they left the class, but she stopped Jester with a gentle touch to her elbow.

“Miss Lavorre, might I have a word?”

Jester blinked, “Uhhh. Sure!”

“I wanted to check in with you…” She tilted her head with a smile, her dark hair coiled up into braids on top of her head, orange baubles dangling from her large ears. Jester suddenly felt as if she walked into some kind of trap. Which was silly. Because Miss. Nila was _nice_.

“I’ve noticed that you’ve started spending a lot of your time with some other classmates…” She said, giving a quick glance to the clock, probably to ensure Jester wasn’t late to her next one. “Namely, Yasha Nydoorin, Caduceus Clay, and Veth Smyth.”

Jester crossed her arms, “Okay?”

“You’re a very talented artist, Jester. You have an incredible knack for creativity and storytelling. You’re intelligent, thoughtful, and have a bright future ahead of you. Highschool is an important steppingstone– I just don’t want you to see those talents wasted simply because you surrounded yourself with people from the wrong crowd.” Even though her words were said kindly, they made Jester’s face twist as if she tasted something sour.

“Uhm.” She pasted on a bright smile, “Thank you, Miss. Nila.”

“Here, let me write a note so Mr. Orly knows you were speaking with me. Just in case you’re late.” She circled around to her desk and passed over a bright yellow note. 

“Thanks.” Jester’s smile was tight and uncomfortable. The second she was free, she dropped her smile, and grimaced at the empty hallway.

A hot, burning ember smoldered in her stomach. Her friends weren’t the ‘ _wrong crowd’_. They were just different. Yasha wore all black and played the harp, Veth experimented with chemistry sets and used her fake I.D. to get booze from the next town over, and Caduceus was often on another plane of existence – but none of those things were _bad_.

It didn’t escape Jester’s notice that Miss Nila excluded Beauregard. _Probably_ because Beau played sports and volunteered at the library. But Beau was just as weird as any of them.

Jester slammed her locker shut with more force than necessary.

“Whoah, Jess – you on the war path?” Fjord grinned at her, leaning his shoulder against the locker beside hers. He wore the same navy blue and white letterman sweater that Beau had, the stitched glyph of a golden trident on the right side, the words of their school embossed on the back.

“Not yet.” Jester sniffed, “What are you doing?”

Fjord lifted the hall pass and waved it in the air, “Needed a moment’s reprieve from algebra.” He raised his eyebrows, “Hey, are you going to the dance?”

“Sort of.” Jester sighed, “I arranged to volunteer at the refreshment table.”

“Cool.” Fjord smiled, “Hey, uh, can I ask you something?”

Jester slid into step beside him, “Always, Fjord.”

“Is…” He scratched the back of his neck, “Is Veth going to be at the dance?”

“Yeah,” She narrowed her eyes, “ _Whyyyy_?”

“I needed to know if I should bring an extra fire extinguisher.” He said, “You know, after last year, when she tried to smuggle in fireworks.”

Jester playfully shoved his shoulder, “Yeah, okay, Fjord. That’s a totally believable reason.”

Still – Jester pocketed that tidbit of information to tease him with later. If she knew anything about Fjord, and she _did_ , then he wasn’t just asking to satisfy his own curiosity. She would have to pay more attention whenever Fjord came around to hang out with their group.

“See you at lunch.” He said, breaking away down a separate hallway, back to his math class.

“See you.” Jester trailed off. Her conversation with Miss Nila still rankled her.

In Orly’s class, she asked if she could work with clay today and he happily obliged. She worked her frustrations through the material and created a rather phallic looking vase. Orly laughed when he saw it and made a few suggestions about the shape, so they could avoid any trouble from administration –

“Art m-m-m-might not have limits, but school districts do.” Remained one of Orly’s famous phrases.

xXx

“I get it.” Caduceus chimed in first after Jester had filled them in about her conversation with Miss. Nila. He nodded slowly, pushing a fried zucchini slice through ketchup, “She thinks we could corrupt you.”

Veth snorted, “As if. We were all model students before Jester came along.”

“It’s just stupid, you know? You guys are my _friends_.” Jester placed her elbows on the table, setting her chin in her hands, “And for the record—none of you have even peer pressured me! Not even once!” She looked around the cafeteria, her gaze snagging on Caleb, who was talking to Fjord by the trash bins. She hoped he might look over and meet her eye. She was serious about her invitation to lunch, after all.

“Did you want us to peer pressure you?” Yasha asked, turning Jester’s attention back to their table.

“Yeah, we could certainly try.”

Caleb still wasn’t looking over at their table.

“No.” Jester laughed, “You’d all be terrible at it. Hold on.” Jester stood up from her seat, waving her arm over her head, “CAYLEB! CAAAYLEB! OVER HERE!”

“What?!” Veth hissed, ducking her head behind Yasha’s massive shoulder.

Jester sat back down with a triumphant smile – “He’s coming over.”

“Oh, I know him. He signed up for the math club.” Beau said, leaning back in the squeaky plastic chair.

“We have a math club?” Caduceus blinked his bloodshot eyes, “Since when?”

“Is this the new kid?” Yasha whispered, “Veth?”

“Ohh shit. That’s right!” Beau smiled, “The one you asked to the dance!”

“Shut up. I hate you all.” Veth replied without malice.

“Good afternoon, Jester.” Caleb set his tray down, taking a seat beside Jester, “Hi Beau.”

“Hey, nerd.”

Jester took charge with introductions – but it turned out that Caleb knew everyone. He had a few advanced placement classes with Beauregard. He had Home Economics with Caduceus and Veth during first period, while he and Yasha were in the same study hall. Caleb was quieter than the rest of them and Jester found herself, more than once, glancing over at him to make sure he was OK.

Her friends – wild and colorful as they were – could be intimidating. Yet, Caleb seemed to do alright. His smiles were light, making his eyes to crinkle at the corners, and his hands often fidgeted when they weren’t pushing food into his mouth. He told them a little about Blumenthal. What the school was like, and teachers, and his classmates. They traded horror stories and outlandish school gossip.

“I’ve actually never seen the ocean until my family came here.” He peeled at the foil wrapping at the top of his juice.

“What!?”

“No way!”

“Not even on vacation?”

Caleb shook his head.

“We went to the beach during our last week before school.” Veth said, nodding toward Caduceus, “Seagulls stole Deuces’ hat.”

“They needed it more than I did.” He said with a slow shrug, “What did you think of the ocean?”

Caleb stayed silent. His blue eyes were focused on his fingers, his tongue darted out – once – to lick his lips before speaking.

“It felt impossible. Endless.” He blinked, looking at Caduceus from across the table, “Terrifying and incredible all at once.”

Caduceus nodded, “Yes. I feel the same way about cities.” He looked at the others with a smile, “I used to be the ‘new kid’ before you came.”

Caleb chuckled, “Sorry to have taken the title.”

“Hey, you know what—” She tapped Caleb’s shoulder, “You should eat lunch with us every day.”

“Oh – I –“ A rush of color filled his cheekbones, “I don’t want to intrude.”

“I don’t think it’s _intruding_ if we’re _inviting_ you, dude.” Beauregard spoke up as she stood and adjusted the flannel tied around her waist.

“Are you going to eat that?” Caduceus pointed to Veth’s boiled broccoli. Her face curdled and she passed the bowl over.

“Have at it, cow man.”

“Yeah – Beau’s right!” Jester grinned, “Everyone’s in agreement, right?” She turned her head to look at the table. No one voiced any complaints.

“Consider it an open invitation then. If you wanna sit with us, you’re more than welcome to, okay?”

Caleb looked at her with a curious expression. He opened his mouth, then closed it, and nodded.

“Okay!” Jester clasped her hands together, “That settles that.”

“He didn’t even have to make a blood oath.” Beau nudged Caleb’s shoulder with her elbow as she passed, “See you in Trig, Caleb!”

“And she calls _me_ the nerd.” Caleb muttered under his breath.

Jester laughed, earning confused looks from Veth and Caduceus, while Yasha smiled down at her pudding.

Caleb stared at her like she said something awe-inspiring and then ducked his face down, his interest returned to pushing the minced fruit around on his plate.

“Speaking of math—” Jester stuck her tongue out, “I should go before the bell.”

A chorus of goodbyes floated up as Jester left their table. Her heart felt lighter than before. Miss. Nila was just… _wrong_. Adults weren’t right about everything. Clearly. Her friends were awesome. She wasn’t going to trade them up for anything. Not even getting into some fancy university or whatever people expected her to do.

xXx

The gymnasium was packed with students in flamboyant dresses and cleanly pressed suits. Flimsy, white streamers dangled and shivered from the metal riggings on the ceiling. At the ‘home’ side of the basketball court, the DJ was switching out vinyl’s to play another sad, slow song and all the students who weren’t brave enough to dance with their dates gravitated to the sidelines or to their tables stacked with empty, plastic cups and paper plates.

Jester swayed her shoulders side to side – her eyes catching Veth on the dance floor. Her yellow dress shimmered under the reflective disco ball and sparking lights. Fjord was talking to Veth, rubbing the back of his neck, and Veth was rolling her eyes.

A small, wistful smile slipped onto Jester’s face.

“You can take a break if you want.” Caleb offered, apparently oblivious to the three giggling freshman who were standing by the table.

“Nah.” Jester glanced at him. He looked like a professor with his tweet jacket and red bowtie. It was the first thing she told him when she saw him tonight. Caleb had sputtered and then went off to find more ice. “I like hanging out with you.”

Caleb’s eyebrows raised, “Is my conversation that stimulating?”

“Oh. It’s _very_ stimulating, Caleb.” She wiggled her eyebrows at him. He chuckled while shaking his head.

Jester watched Veth pull Fjord back to the dance floor. The song changing to something upbeat and loud.

“Why’d you move here?” She asked, toying with the gauzy fabric of her lilac dress.

Caleb’s shoulders tightened, but then he exhaled. He sidestepped closer to her and spoke quietly, but still loud enough for Jester to hear him over the music.

“Can you keep a secret?”

Her eyes lit up and she nodded, leaning forward.

“I was expelled from my last school.” Caleb said. A shadow crossed over his face. The vibrant disco lights fractured the frown on his features. And he slowly shook his head as if to chase the memories away.

“Nicodranas was the only place that would accept me.”

She blinked. She tried to imagine Caleb – her new friend – who actually _studied_ during study hall, who joined the math club with Beau, who sometimes ate lunch in the library, who always carried a book with him – she tried to imagine him doing something so bad that he’d get expelled for it. And truthfully, she just couldn’t.

“Really?”

“Really.” His eyelashes kissed his cheekbones as he looked down, “I don’t regret it though. I will _never_ regret what I did.” A fierceness entered his tone. A cold steel that she never heard before.

Caleb moved away.

Jester stood, frozen, suddenly aware of the absence of his shoulder next to hers. The faint smell of his cologne fading away as the music changed over and the refreshment table was overwhelmed with sweaty, bright-eyed students. She worried her lower lip between her teeth as she watched him reach across the table to pass a bottle of water to someone.

“Hey, Caleb?”

“Ja?” He turned his head to her. He was backlit in neon blue with small motes of dust swirling in the air behind him.

She grinned, “You’re so _mysterious_.”

“What do you mean?” He held a water bottle out to her, a grin flirting with the edges of his lips, “I’m an open book.”

Their fingers brushed as she took the bottle from him. She wiped the cool condensation away on her skirt and turned away to hide the strange, flooding warmth that tingled her cheeks.

“Jess!” Veth bounded over to the table, “I need to talk to you _right now_.”

“Oh.” She looked at Caleb, who nodded, “Okay! Uh. Caleb, I’ll be right back, okay?”

Veth grasped her hand and pulled her through the throngs of students and tables. She pushed open the door, into the cool air of the hallway, where some students were milling about and conversing away from the noise of the dance.

Veth walked down the hall several paces before letting Jester’s hand go. She took a deep inhale and Jester rocked back and forth on her heels as she waited for Veth to spit it out.

“Fjord asked me out!”

“H-he- What?!” Jester’s hands slapped over her mouth, her eyes widening, “Veth!”

“I know!” Veth tugged at her braid, “I didn’t know what to say so I just ran to get you.”

“Veth!” Jester squealed her friends’ name. This was an interesting development. She recalled Fjord’s unusual behavior when he asked if Veth would be at the dance. Had Fjord been crushing on Veth this whole time? Jester had been so wrapped up in learning about Caleb that she hadn’t noticed anything new with Fjord.

“What?!” Veth’s voice pitched higher than normal, “I didn’t know what to say! I haven’t been on a date since me and Yeza broke up!”

“Do you like him?”

“I don’t know!” Veth huffed, “I mean…I just—me?” She made a vague gesture toward herself, “I know I’m irresistible, but I never thought I’d be his type. Look at his ex. She’s a ruthless bitch.” She paused, “Wait, nevermind, maybe I am his type.”

“You are nothing like Avantika.” Jester pursed her lips, “You are way prettier than she is, way smarter, and way cooler. But Veth if you’re looking for my advice – I think you should do it. It’s just one date. It doesn’t mean you _have_ to like him. Just see it where it goes!”

Veth nodded, considering Jester’s words.

“You’re right.” She snapped her fingers, “I can get a free dinner out of this.”

Jester glanced up, toward the gymnasium doors, where Caleb was waiting for her to come back.

“Did you still like Caleb?”

Veth tilted her head, “I think Caleb is _hot_.”

“But do you _like_ him?” Jester swallowed, “Because if you like him, then you shouldn’t go out with Fjord, because that would be confusing.”

A sinking, crawling feeing squirmed in her gut at the thought of Veth liking Caleb, of Veth wanting to date Caleb, of Veth and Caleb _dating_ in general – which was a stupid, weird feeling – because the whole reason Jester agreed to help at the dance was to help Veth. But that was _weeks_ ago.

Before she knew that he was funny and the dimple in his chin became more obvious when he smiled.

Before she knew that he was considerate and got an extra cinnamon bun at lunch and saved it for her.

“Good point.” Veth sighed, looked back at the gym, then shrugged, “I guess it’s a good thing I don’t like Caleb.”

“You – don’t?”

“You can think people are hot and not want to date them, Jessie.” Veth grinned, “I think Bluud is hot, but I don’t want to date _him_.”

Jester scrunched her nose, thinking of her mother’s long-time friend and neighbor ever since Jester was little, “Bluud is like thirty years old.”

“He’s still hot!” Veth replied with indignation, “He’s a DILF.”

Jester howled with laughter. She looped her arm with Veth’s and they walked together back to the dance. A weight that she couldn’t understand lifted from her shoulders.

She let Veth go to find Fjord and she walked with her hands clasped behind her back to the refreshment table.

Her silver heels clicked against the shiny, waxed floor.

Her face turned up toward the lights and streamers.

It hit her that this would be her last homecoming dance. She was graduating this year. Next year, she’d be considered an adult. She’d have to apply to schools. Her friends would apply to schools. They would all go their separate ways. Beauregard was already talking about her academic scholarship to the Cobalt Soul. Caduceus was expected to return to his family’s farm.

And as for Jester - she’d have to go away from her Mama.

She’d have to be away from the only home she’s ever known.

The only friends she’s ever had.

She was expected to leave it all behind.

A twinge of melancholy tugged at her heart and Jester forcefully pushed away.

“Jester, are you alright?” Caleb’s voice cut through her thoughts and made her jump.

She blinked, “Huh? Yeah!” She pulled her face into her best smile, “Of course I am! What are you doing?”

“They’re giving us a break.” He turned half-way to the table where two other students took their place, “Did you want to dance?”

Jester studied his profile. His jawline, his handsome nose, and the auburn hair curling around his ear.

She grabbed his arm and felt it flex beneath her grasp – “Yes, I want to dance!”

She pulled him into the crowd of swaying bodies and looped her arms around Caleb’s shoulders. Caleb, flustered, and nervously looking around, slowly placed his hands on her waist. Jester couldn’t help herself. She beamed up at him and watched his throat move as he swallowed.

They swayed together for half-a-song.

Until Caleb’s hand fell from her waist and grabbed hers instead. He led them into a traditional waltz and Jester threw her head back with a wonderful laugh. She followed the one-two-three-four box step. Their own little pocket forming on the dance floor as other students stayed out of their way, some whispering and chuckling behind their hands. Jester pretended not to notice them. She chose to instead focus on her dance partner. The bookish, funny, mysterious friend of hers.

“Are you having fun?” He asked, his eyes crinkling at the corners as he smiled. Jester’s heart jumped.

“Mhm.” She squeezed his hand, “Are _you_?”

His mouth opened and, the song switched, and an uproarious applause and cheer followed it.

The balloons and confetti that was strung up on the ceiling released.

It showered down upon them in colors of gold, and silver, and white. Jester let go of Caleb’s hands and shot her arms upward, tilting her head back, her laughter filling her lungs. She bounced a balloon on her fingertips, letting it drift and float over to someone else, as the floor vibrated with music.

She dropped her gaze back down, to Caleb, who was smiling at her as glitter stuck to his tweed jacket and caught on strands of his hair. It illuminated him in golden and silver.

Jester reached out and took his hand again, “Come on – we’re still dancing!”

“Wh-w-ha-?” He sputtered, his cheeks going red.

She pulled his arm over her head, forcing him to twirl her, and the sound of his laughter stuck to her ribs. She swayed and shimmied, pulling Caleb along with her ridiculous dance moves, until he started to loosen up with her.

Caleb leaned toward her, his mouth next to her ear – “You are something else, Jester Lavorre.”

A shiver ran down her spine.

She playfully shoved his shoulder, “You haven’t seen _anything_ yet, Caleb Widogast!” She teased with a grin.

He looked down at her with that sweet, shy smile and Jester inhaled sharply. A silver balloon bopped the top of his head and just like that – whatever magical moment that had suspended them in time – was broken.

Jester couldn’t tell if she was relieved or not. All she knew was that her heart was racing.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> cw: underage drinking/Veth smokes weed/and Jester does get drunk. (I know that's not canon-typical for her, but uhh, this is a rebellious high school AU) It's also been a while since I was in high school so I remember nothing.

“I can’t believe you’ve gone on _THREE_ dates with Fjord.” Beau said, her head in Yasha’s lap, as she laid on the bleachers behind the school. Yasha threaded her fingers through Beau’s short hair with a tiny smile on her dark lips.

“Why is that so unbelievable?!” Veth fished her lighter from her jean jacket, adorned with pins and buttons. She lit her rolled joint, coughed as she exhaled, and then passed it over to Caduceus. He inhaled deeply and smiled at Jester as she joined them with her sketchbook tucked under her arm.

“Because – hey, Jester – you are way out of his league.” Beau lifted her head, “You’re definitely smarter than he is. You’re craftier. You’re prettier than he is. You could have _any_ guy in the school. Fjord can’t even throw a football.”

“To be fair, I can’t throw a football either.” Caduceus chimed in.

“He’s on the football team.” Veth snapped back, tossing her lighter back and forth between her hands.

“Yeah,” Beau snorted, “cause he _charmed_ his way there, not because he’s any good.”

Jester sat down, “Beau, don’t you think you’re being a little harsh? I think Veth and Fjord make a nice couple. It’s not about his excellence in sports or if he knows how to use a hot glue gun. What matter is how he treats her, right?”

Veth blew smoke rings into the cool, October air.

“I have to agree with Jester.” Yasha said, “She’s had a good time on her dates. That’s what matters.”

“And none of you have seen him with his shirt off.” Veth grinned toothily, “He’s buff!”

“Look, I’m not saying I dislike Fjord!” Beau sat up, resting her elbows on her knees, “Because I do like Fjord. He’s one of my best friends. I just think he’s gotta do more than these boring dates! You’ve-“

She held up one hand, and lifted a finger for each description, “Gone out to dinner, saw a movie, and most recently you went bowling. _Bowling_!? Like come on. I know he can do better. Hell, even with Avantika, they went on like a fucking cruise ship one time.”

“I _hate_ boats.” Veth furrowed her brows.

“Veth, what would your perfect, romantic date be?” Jester asked, stopping her drawing of Frumpkin – Caleb’s orange tabby cat.

“Easy.” Veth shrugged, “Crossbow competition with drinks afterwards, then we rent out a room in the tavern and spend the night.” She looked at Jester, “What’s yours?”

Jester looked skyward. The fantasy of a date formed in her mind. A man with auburn colored hair and blue eyes sat across from her. His smile sending her heart in overdrive. She swallowed, pressed her lips together, and shrugged.

“I haven’t thought about it.”

“You read romance novels.” Beau said, “And you haven’t thought about it?”

“Not really.” Jester shrugged again, “What’s _your_ dream date?”

Beau smiled and flopped back down, resting her head back in Yasha’s lap, “Already happened. It involved ninjas.”

“Good Gods, you are all so weird.” Caduceus said with a serene smile, “I like weird. It’s good.”

Jester smiled, returning to her drawing, as Beauregard and Veth continued to talk. A chilled breeze carried the dead leaves across the field. She tucked her chin a little deeper into her scarf.

_“For you.” Caleb said. He passed the crinkly, brown paper into Jester’s hands._

_“What? You – what’s this for?” Jester clutched the package._

_“It’s ah—” He scratched his cheek, “A thank you. I suppose. For being so welcoming.” He shrugged and the bell rang, “I’ll see you in class.”_

_She tore apart the twine and paper and discovered a lovely, knitted scarf. The colors were stripped pearl and pink. She wrapped it around her neck and then checked her reflection in the mirror taped to the inside of her locker. She fondly touched the sides that tickled her jaw. Her heart lodged itself inside her throat._

_She looked down the empty hallway, ‘It smells like you.’_

“So, are you going to come or what?” Veth poked Jester’s leg, “Jess?”

“Hm?”

“My party this weekend.”

“Oh, sure!” She brightened, “Sounds like fun.”

Veth squinted her eyes, “You weren’t even listening, were you?”

“Your parties are _always_ great, Veth.” She smiled, “I’ll be there. Really. Just text me if you need me to bring anything.”

“What were you thinking about?”

“N-nothing.” Jester shrugged, snapping her sketchbook shut, “I should go before the bell.”

“Jester!” Veth called after her, but she was already skipping down the bleachers, and waving goodbye.

“Something’s up with her.” Veth said, crossing her arms, and looking over at Caduceus, Yasha, and Beau.

xXx

Jester slumped her shoulders and let her forehead fall against her Chemistry textbook. Fuck molecules and elements. They were _dumb_. How were they important toward anything she wanted to do? Not that she _knew_ what she wanted to do.

“Jester?”

Her head lifted to the concerned expression of the one and only Caleb Widogast.

“Hey.” She laid her cheek back down onto the cool pages, “Don’t mind me. I’m just photosynthesizing.”

He chuckled, “That so? Can I join you?”

She nodded. The paper crinkled against her cheek.

She felt him slide into the chair beside her in the library. The steady sound of rain pounded against the windowpanes. The unique, comforting scent of books surrounded her. If it wasn’t for her upcoming test that she was likely about to _fail,_ then Jester might’ve said she was relaxed.

“I hate chemistry.” She muttered.

Caleb folded his arms on the wooden surface and rested his cheek against them, like a pillow, so they both were sprawled together on the table.

Jester smiled despite her awful mood.

“I’ve found chemistry to be comforting.”

She rolled her eyes, “Of course you do.”

“I mean it.” His eyes roamed across her face, searching it, “We have known formulas, and elements, and equations. We know that if we mix this chemical with another then we will have this result. We understand how elements and chemicals react. Some are explosive, while others are repulsive, like oil and water.”

He reached out, touching the corner of her chemistry book with the pad of his thumb, “Show me what you’re working on.”

Jester blinked at him. She thought of his additional classes – the advanced ones he took with Beauregard – and she couldn’t justify taking up more of his time. Not when he probably had a billion other assignments and tests.

She sighed, “It’s okay. I don’t need any help.” She sat up and rubbed her cheek, “I’ll figure it out. But thank you. Offering to help me was very sweet, Caleb.” She almost teased him more, but the words got stuck in her throat.

He straightened, “Okay.” He swallowed, looked away, and pulled his books from his bag, “Is it alright if I study with you?”

Jester nodded.

They fell into a quiet, contemplative silence. Caleb’s pen scratched in a rhythmic pattern, the paper rustling as he flipped through his book, holding a page with his index finger, and then flipped back again. Jester kept stealing glances over at him. She watched him – his neat, condensed handwriting, and the way he’d tap his pen against his chin, and the shift to his shoulders as he’d hunch over the page with his lips twisted in a frown. Sometimes, he’d clear his throat and shake his head, and cross out lines of notes before starting again.

Jester let her chin fall into her palm as she read through the page again with her pencil poised over her empty note page. The sound of rain lulled her eyelids to close. In her defense – it’s not _her_ fault that chemistry is boring. She snapped herself awake.

“Do you drink coffee or soda?” Caleb asked with his blue eyes scanning his book.

“Mhm.” Jester hid a yawn behind her hand, “I’m not really _sleepy_. It’s just –“ She tapped her pencil against her book, “This stuff is boring.”

“Watch my stuff for me, Ja?” Caleb asked as he suddenly stood. Jester’s lips parted. Her eyes followed him as he left the library and turned right down the hallway.

She peered over at his notes. It was math. Even more boring, somehow, than her chemistry book.

“ _Oh_.” She gasped. Her gaze snagged on a little doodle in the corner margin of his notes. She leaned closer to see it and a small Jester-angel smiled up at her.

She leaned back into her chair and pressed her hands to her cheeks. They were warm. She was warm all over. Her leg bouncing, Jester fished her phone out of her backpack, and sent a text to the group chat.

_[THE CHAOS CREW]_

_Jester: Do you think it means something if a guy draws a picture of you in his notebook?_

The replies from her friends were instantaneous. Clearly, they weren’t paying much attention in class either.

_Beau: is he creepy?_

_Veth: do we know this guy (thinking emoji face)_

_Beau: what kind of drawing? Sexy drawing? If sexy – totally gross. He’s a creep._

Jester rolled her eyes.

Her tongue poked at the inside of her cheek as she typed back another reply. Before sending, she took a picture of the drawing and sent it to the chat.

_Jester: This is the drawing. Cute, right?_

_Beau: CALEB_

A hot, rolling wave of embarrassment struck her. Her heart kicked up a notch inside her chest and Jester, quickly, though uselessly tried to do damage control. As much as she **_MAYBE_** liked Caleb, she _definitely_ wasn’t ready for her friends to know about it. Beauregard was still getting used to the idea of Fjord and Veth dating.

No reason to drop another bomb on their group.

Especially when Jester didn’t even know how Caleb felt about _her_.

_Jester: What? It’s not Caleb. It’s someone else._

_Beau: You can’t get out of this one. I recognize the handwriting._

_Veth: O SHIT!! (shocked emoji face)_

_Jester: OK. NVM!_

_Beau: Want me to ask him?_

_Jester: No!_

_Veth: O SHIIT!!! CAY-CAY GOT A CRUSH!! <3_

_Beau: This is not a text convo. Let’s meet up after school._

_Veth: SLEEPOVER AT JESSIES!_

Jester set her phone down on the table, the screen facing down, and covered her face in her hands. She ignored the buzzing that was likely Veth and Beauregard demanding more answers. She sighed. Caleb was sweet, and funny, and she counted him as one of her friends and she liked him.

Did she like him as more than a friend?

The only other person she had ever liked was Fjord. That was a long time ago, though. It didn’t take her long to realize that she and Fjord were better as friends. Would that be the case with her and Caleb? Is that what she wanted?

She didn’t know. It made her head spin.

“Is your homework truly _that_ bad?” Jester pulled her hands away from her face to see Caleb standing at the other side of the table, a can of soda in one hand and a paper bag in the other.

She closed her eyes for a moment and shook her head. She needed to focus. On homework. Not on boys.

“What’d you bring?” She pointed at the bag, “Is it doughnuts?”

His lips twisted, a look of uncertainty passing across his features, “Ah – no. I’m afraid not. It’s just some bear claws.”

“What!!” Jester shouted, earning a harsh look and ‘shush!’ from the librarian. She stood up from her chair, planting her palms on the table and leaning forward, toward him, “Really, Caleb?”

He set the can of soda down and then passed the bag over to her.

“See for yourself.”

She unceremoniously tore the bag open, the wafting warm scent of cinnamon and buttery goodness filling her nostrils and splitting her face into a wide grin.

“Oh, Caleb, this is _perfect_.” She sank back down into her chair, “Where’d you get them?”

“The cafeteria ladies. They’re quite fond of me.”

“Yeah, because they think you need to eat more.” She teased, pulling out one of the bear claws as Caleb sat back down beside her. As much as she wanted to just devour them, she tore off a piece and offered it to him.

He held up his hand, “They’re for you.”

“Have some.” She pushed it toward him, “Please?”

“Very well.” He plucked the offered piece from her fingertips and popped it into his mouth. Jester’s heart glowed as she watched him chew. Her entire body hummed with excitement and gratitude and something _else_. A nervous, fluttery feeling that tickled her stomach and danced down to her toes.

She softened, reaching out and touching Caleb’s shoulder, “Thank you.”

“It’s—” He cleared his throat, his ears turning a bright shade of pink, “It’s nothing.”

Jester pulled her hand away, wiping grains of cinnamon off on her flannel leggings, “Okay! I’m ready to learn chemistry. Let’s do this.”

She looked down at her textbook and nibbled her lower lip between her teeth. She _would_ figure this out. She flipped to the practice quiz on the last page and wrote down her answers in-between sips of soda and brief, fleeting glances to Caleb.

Sometimes, she’d glance over and find that he was glancing at _her_. He’d always hurriedly look back down. But each time it happened; Jester couldn’t help the lingering smile that would stick to her lips as easily as the cinnamon stuck to her fingertips.

xXx

Jester laid on her back, staring up at her canopy, at the artwork she painted and drew above her head. The soft sound of Veth’s snoring and Beau’s breathing, the steady ocean waves beyond her balcony, and the steady thrum of her own heartbeat surrounded her.

She picked at the threads of her comforter as she replied her conversation with Veth and Beauregard that evening.

“Caleb is the quiet type. If he likes you, which I think he _might_ , he’s not going to say it right away.” Beau said.

“Just ask him out.” Veth said, shoving a handful of popcorn into her mouth.

“I don’t know if I like him like that!” Jester scrubbed her hands over her face, “Beau, how do you feel around Yasha?”

Beau laughed nervously, “W-what do you mean? I feel normal.”

“Liar.” Veth coughed.

“I dunno, man!” She threw her hands into the air, “She – she’s cool, alright? I feel…a little nervous around her sometimes, I guess, but it’s not _bad_.” Beau paused for a long moment, “I feel seen. I know that sounds kinda lame but…when I talk to her and when I’m around her…I just feel like she _gets_ me, you know? Even when I think about the future and how fucking scary it can be – it feels less fucking terrifying when I think about a future with her in it.”

“Wow.” Veth whispered with a pointed look over to Jester.

 _Do I feel seen by Caleb?_ Jester asked the art-covered ceiling.

_“You are quite good at that.” He said, eyes on her drawings, then drifting upward to her face._

_“You can take a break if you want.” Caleb offered, as she looked out at the dancefloor, apparently obvious in her desire to get out there and have fun with Veth._

_The sadness of reality and adulthood closing in on her. Reminding her that all of this would come to an end soon. That someday, she’d have to leave her friends, her home, her mom - “Jester, are you alright?”_

_The soft, hand-crafted sweater resting comfortably around her neck. The weight and warmth providing her an anchor in the chilled, frost-bitten mornings._

_This afternoon when she felt buried and overwhelmed. Caleb offering to help. Caleb getting her bear claws and soda. Caleb sitting beside her until the final bell rang and they were forced to part ways._

Jester rolled over onto her side. She could see Beau’s silhouette in the darkness. The steady rise and fall of her friend’s chest.

_Is the future less terrifying when I think about a future with Caleb in it?_

Jester closed her eyes and dreamt of the color amber.

xXx

The mint-colored townhouse glowed in the late evening. Each window orange and bright. The tiny fairy lights that wrapped around the iron fence twinkled as Jester approached with a bag of groceries in hand. A few students – whom Jester didn’t recognize – were sitting on the front steps smoking and laughing.

The thumping bass of music vibrated along the soles of her feet and up her spine as she pushed open the door to Veth’s family home. The living room furniture had been pushed and rearranged to accommodate a plastic table where four people were playing drinking games. Anyone who wasn’t sitting down was pressed alongside the wooden, paneled walls with their drinks in hand. And Jester spotted more than one couple making out on the couch.

She squeezed and pushed her way through, away from the living room and dining room (where snacks had been laid out) and into the kitchen.

“Jessie is here!” Veth yelled from her perch on the countertop. Fjord’s arm comfortably around her shoulders. “Tell me you brought the pineapples!”

Jester lifted the bag and Veth hollered with joy.

She set the bag down and with Fjord’s help, they cut up the pineapples and other fruits, and carried them to the dining room.

“Things seem to be going well with Veth.” Jester remarked conversationally as she accepted a tray of apples from Fjord.

“Yeah.” His cheeks flushed a dark, sea-green, “They are.”

Jester drummed her fingertips on the table, giving Fjord a look up and down, “Keep it that way, got it?”

“Uh—” Fjord blinked, his yellow eyes widening as he met Jester’s glare.

“I’m just saying…” Jester narrowed her eyes, “It’s not just me, you know? Beauregard and Yasha could kill a man with their eyes closed. Caduceus knows all the best places to hide a body. And that’s not even including his family-owned cemetery.”

Jester patted him on the shoulder with a smile, “Good talk.”

She breezed past him, back into the kitchen, so she could finish helping Veth with the snacks. As she did so, Veth handed her fruity, fun drinks that tasted like strawberry and passionfruit and blueberry and it didn’t take long before Jester found herself sitting in the grass outside because the cool air felt good on her skin.

The memories of getting outside were hazy. She remembered finishing baking cookies. She remembered eating some cookies. She remembered dancing with Veth in the upstairs sitting room (which had obviously been turned into a dance floor). She remembered watching Beuregard win at arm wrestling competitions.

It was the transition between these activities that Jester had trouble recalling. If she had any conversations, she couldn’t tell you what they entailed.

She had fun. Or she did. Anyway. Until….

She sighed, curling her arms around her knees, and resting her chin on top of them.

“Ah, there you are.”

Jester turned her head to see the blurry image of Caleb walking down the hill toward her.

“You’ll catch a cold out here.” He pulled his jacket off and draped it over her shoulders. Jester’s muscles loosened as she sank into the delightful warmth of his coat with its silken lining. She clutched it tighter around her shoulders.

“What about you?”

Caleb sat beside her, “I’ll be alright. I’m hoping to convince you to come back inside.”

Jester stuck out her tongue.

“It’s _nice_ out here.”

“Hm. For now.” He looked at his watch, “In an hour or so, it’ll get much colder, and I am afraid I am not strong enough to drag you inside.”

Jester’s throat went tight and hot and she tightly pressed her lips together to stop the sudden, overwhelming emotion that had her in its grip. She buried her nose down, tucking it between her knees, hoping to hide her face from Caleb and the rest of the world.

It didn’t work.

Of course, it didn’t.

“Jester?” His voice – the roughness of his accent combined with the soft, careful way in which he pronounced her name. It was too much. It was too much for her to handle right now.

“Why are you always so nice to me, Caleb?”

“Why wouldn’t I be nice to you?” He sounded baffled, but she couldn’t bring herself to turn her head and look at him. “Jester, I consider you to be one of my closest friends.”

 _A friend. I don’t like him as a friend._ She realized with a dull throb to her heart. 

Jester sniffled. The hot, prickly warmth of tears filling her lower lashes and spilling down her cheeks. Yet, distantly, she knew that she wasn’t crying about Caleb. Rather, it was Caleb’s kindness that finally broke her reserves. All the grief she bottled up months ago.

Caleb’s arm went around her shoulders, the weight of it grounding her, and Jester let her head fall to his chest. She selfishly let herself burrow into the safety and warmth of his embrace.

Caleb didn’t say anything.

He just let her cry.

His grip around her shoulders tightened, “Jester – do you need me to take you home?”

“N-no.” She worked the word through a sob, “It’s not that. It’s not this. It—It’s…”

She pulled her heavy head upright, staring at him through her tears, “My dad left us.” She inhaled shakily, tasting salt on her lips, “Before the year started…he just… ** _left_** …and I just – I just want – I want to understand. I want to know why he couldn’t love me and Mama enough to _stay_.”

She wiped the snot from her nose with the sleeve of her sweater, “Why couldn’t he _love_ m-m-me enough? He doesn’t even want to see me, you know? I call him and he doesn’t answer, or he _does_ answer, and he tells me he’s too busy for me to come visit. I haven’t seen him in months. And – and – it sucks. It’s _sucks_. I’m mad at him and I’m sad and I’m just--” She huffed, “Am I not good enough?”

Caleb’s brows pinched together, his jaw firm and set, but his blue eyes were soft and yielding beneath her gaze.

She let out another weepy, hiccupped laugh, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have trusted Veth’s drinks. I’m ss-orry.” She tried to shift away, to give him some space, but Caleb pulled her closer and hugged her. It was a little awkward, but she tucked her arms underneath his, twisting her spine and burying her nose into the crook of his shoulder.

His large palm cradled the back of her head and smoothed down her hair as he held her.

“Jester.” He said her name quietly. His breath tickled her wet, sticky cheek.

“His actions are not a reflection of you or your mother.”

She fisted her hands around the fabric of his shirt at the middle of his back.

“I do not know your father. I cannot claim to know his mind.” His palm rested at the back of her neck. She could feel his fingertips gently pressing into the tightness at the base of her skull. Jester closed her eyes, letting the remnants of her tears trail down her face and drip onto Caleb’s shoulder.

“But I do know you. And I know that he is the one missing out.” He said.

She sniffled, her lips turning upward in a small smile, “Thanks, Caleb.”

“Give it some time, Ja?” She nodded at his words and slowly, regretfully, disentangled her arms from their vice around his middle. She leaned back, swiping at her cheeks with the backs of her hands, before meeting Caleb’s gaze.

“Thank you, Caleb.” She swallowed, an ache forming between her eyebrows, “I think…I’m ready to go home...”

“I can give you a ride.” He got to his feet, brushed grass off his pants, and offered his hand to Jester to help her up.

She slid her fingers between his and didn’t let go as they left the party with Caleb’s jacket draped over her shoulders.


	3. Chapter 3

The only sign of winter in Nicodranas was the onslaught of rainstorms and typhoons. They were lucky, so far, that none of the hurricanes reached the coast. Yet, Jester knew it was only a matter of time until the skies unleashed their storms. Normally, this wouldn’t bother her, but lately, Jester felt restless. As if a storm of her own was brewing. 

Every time she saw Caleb, her heart would leap inside her chest, beating steadily and loudly in her ears, and she’d have to push it all down just so she could meet his eyes. He remained a stalwart friend. He never mentioned what happened at Veth’s party a few months ago. He helped her with her chemistry homework when she asked. He continued to partner up with her during English class. And – according to Beau – whenever she brought up Jester in conversation, Caleb was polite and thoughtful but didn’t answer any direct questions about his feelings.

It was nothing like the ardent, torrid love-affairs that she read about. 

She couldn’t deny _her_ feelings, however. Even if Caleb didn’t stand with roses outside her balcony and recite poetry or pull her into a darkened alleyway and kiss her senseless – she still _liked_ him. She liked him _a lot_.

She sank further into the bean bag chair and watched Yasha tune her guitar in the mildew and smoke scented basement. Yasha was a member of a band known as _The Storm Lords_. Jester thought they were very good. Good enough to be professionals if they wanted to.

Yasha played a few experimental chords and then looked up at Jester –

“You’re quiet today.”

Jester pulled at the shoelace of her glittered pink sneaker, “Yasha, how do you know if someone likes you?”

Yasha immediately flushed, “I am not exactly an expert on these things.”

“You’re dating Beau!”

She rubbed the back of her neck, “I suppose…I thought – _maybe_ \- Beau liked me…when she went out of her way to come to our show. The one in Trostenwald. She made the effort to be there because she knew it was important to me...”

“So, they do stuff for you?” She rubbed her lips together. Caleb did stuff for her all the time. Did that mean he liked her back? Or was he just being a good friend? She sighed dramatically and tossed her head back against her chair to stare at the paneled, white ceiling.

“In my limited experience…someone who likes you…they’re willing to make the effort to show how much they care…in their own way.”

Yasha strummed a note on her guitar, “Is this about Caleb?”

“Am I that obvious?” Jester groaned and squeezed her eyes shut.

“You smile more when he’s around.” She paused, a thoughtful smile on her face, “He does too, actually.”

“He makes me _feel_ —” Jester blew a raspberry, waving her hands in the air in a wild fashion, and sighed again, “and I don’t know what to do about it.”

“Have you thought about talking with him?”

Jester shook her head. She recognized the fluttering, twisting feeling in her stomach. She didn’t want to talk about it with Caleb because what if he didn’t feel the same? What if he rejected her? Here she was – surrounded by her wonderful friends and their partners – and she counted Caleb as one of those wonderful friends. She didn’t want to _lose_ him. She didn’t want to make it _weird_ just because she had a crush on him.

Jester straightened up, “So, what song are you going to practice today?”

xXx

“Caleb!” Jester jogged to catch up with him, the cool rain splattering on the sidewalk and down her bright green raincoat. Caleb tilted his head at her. The corner of his mouth uplifting into a sideways smile.

“Hello, Jester.”

“Hey, so uh,” She cleared her throat, remembering Yasha’s words, “Beau mentioned some kind of math competition this weekend?”

Caleb nodded, “Yes, it’s on Saturday.”

“Cool! Can I come?” Jester shoved her hands into the deep pockets of her coat.

“You don’t like math.” He peered at her; his expression confused.

“So?” She blinked up at him. The rainwater kissed her cheeks. “You’re my friend. I want to support you – and Beau – too – obviously. _Duh_. Both of you.”

Caleb’s grip on his blue umbrella adjusted and Jester felt the rain stop as he held it over her head. Her heart swelled five times inside her chest. She bit down on her lower lip to stop herself from blurting out all the secret, honeyed words that were trapped on her tongue.

“You are more than welcome to come along and cheer us on.”

Jester stepped closer, so the umbrella could cover him too, and the toes of her boots touched his.

“I’ll make signs.” She raised both eyebrows, “With _lots_ of glitter.”

“I expect nothing less.” He said, “Hide a few dicks in there for good luck.”

Jester giggled, “Only for you, Cay-leb.”

He looked around the emptying parking lot. The students rushing to their cars before the rain fell too heavily and soaked them to the bone. He turned his attention back to Jester and swallowed before speaking.

“Did you – I mean – would you like a ride home?”

Jester reached over, looping her arm with his, “You’re such a gentleman, Caleb!” She teased. He ducked his head away, but she caught the color blossoming on his face. She pressed her cheek to his damp coat sleeve and walked, arm-in-arm, to Caleb’s car.

xXx

Jester shoved herself into the backseat of Caleb’s car, sandwiched against the door, with Yasha at the other end and Veth in the middle. Her multiple posterboards, decorated with plenty of glitter (as promised), and several bad math puns that Veth came up with. On her legs, she balanced a box of cupcakes from her favorite bakery, and hoped they’d survive the trip.

Beau twisted around so she could face the others, “I can’t wait to see Essek’s face when we win.”

“Hell yeah!” Veth held out her hand to fist-bump with Beau.

“Whose Essek?”Jester asked.

“He’s the reigning champion from Xhorhas.” Caleb answered as he ducked his head to get into the driver seat, “Yasha, do you have enough room? I can move my seat.”

“I’m okay.”

“ _Seatbelts_ , everyone.” Caleb said with tap to Beau’s shoulder with his knuckles.

Beau grumbled as she spun back around and yanked her seatbelt across her chest.

“Let’s go, _Jannik_!” Beau said with an excited whoop as she drummed both hands against Caleb’s dashboard.

Jester beamed as she watched the coastal town of Nicodranas thin out until they reached the main freeway and all she could see was the ocean to her left and expanses of gray, salted cliffsides to her right. Beau shuffled through Caleb’s music tastes until finding something acceptable to her ears.

Jester’s head fell back, and she closed her eyes. Caleb and Beau’s voice, snapping equations back and forth to each other, testing one another, and then Veth interjecting with humorous anecdotes and inappropriate jokes.

Her heart felt lighter. It hadn’t felt this _free_ since her dad left.

The hours flew by, with Caleb and Beauregard taking turns driving, and everyone occasionally moving around so that not everyone was cramped in the backseat for the entire four-hour trip.

Jester opened up her box of cupcakes as she sat in the passenger seat beside Caleb, “Which one do you want Caleb?”

“Hm?” His hands flexed on the steering wheel, “Do you have blueberry?”

She looked down at the vanilla and blueberry cupcake and carefully lifted it from the box, “I do!”

“Perfect. Save that one for me.”

“Really? That’s the one you want?” She felt the pressure of Beau’s knees as she pressed against the back of Jester’s seat.

Caleb smirked, “That’s the one.”

The rocky cliffsides soon gave way to dense, wide expansive forests and then purple-hued mountains as they crossed over into Xhorhas.

“Wow!” Jester breathed, leaning forward, clutching the box of cupcakes to her chest as the city bloomed in front of them. The dark, indigo buildings were taller than any she’d ever seen before in Nicodranas. They gleamed like onyx and amethyst in the strange, artificial dim-light of the city.

She turned to Caleb as he parked, and held the cupcake out to him, “Are you ready?”

He gently took the offered sweet from her hands. Her fingertips tingled where they touched.

“Shouldn’t I wait to eat this until after I win?” He asked with a slight tilt to his head.

“No way!” Jester laughed, “It’s brain food. You need the sugar to focus!”

“Hm.” He took a bite and Jester grinned at the frosting that clung to his upper lip.

“You’ve got –“ She reached out, without thinking, and swiped it away with her thumb.

Caleb stared at her.

The myriad of lights reflected in the dark, blown pupils of his eyes.

Her heart thumped loud in her chest.

“You guys comin’?” Beau banged her fist against the hood of the car and Jester snapped backward, her spine hitting the seat, and her hand covering her chest.

“Yeah!” Jester choked out, scrambling to unbuckle and get the hell out of the car before her heart escaped.

“Why am I carrying the signs?!” Veth yelled, holding the posterboards above her head.

“I’ll get them.” Jester nearly tripped in her haste. She scooped up the signs, glitter falling out across her dress and shoes, “Let’s go!”

xXx

The competition – much to Jester’s surprise – wasn’t as boring as she expected. Everyone was competitive and ruthless. She wasn’t the only one holding signs, but she _definitely_ was the only one with a sign that had no less than four hidden glitter-dicks and balls.

“Yeah! Go Cay-Cay!” Veth screamed from the bleachers as Caleb got an answer correct. Yasha clapped the loudest out of any of them. The energy of the room was _loud_ , with banners and signs, and cheering each time a team either got a point or failed.

“It’s time for the lightening round.” The host said before looking at both teams. The Drow man with his slicked back, white hair returned his attention to the crowd, “The team from Nicodranas and the team from Rosohna will nominate one individual. We will go through rapid questions. No pen or paper is allowed during this section. It is all mental math. I will give you a moment to deliberate among yourselves to nominate this person.”

Jester watched as Caleb and Beau bowed their heads together and spoke quietly with their other teammates. The team from Rosohna did not deliberate. Essek glided up to the podium and folded his hands behind his back.

“It’s gotta be Caleb.” Veth said, chewing on her thumbnail, “He’s a genius.”

Jester’s brows pinched and a slow smile spread across her face as she saw Caleb nod and meet her gaze across the dozens of heads. He smiled gently and tapped his index and middle finger to his lower lip. Jester didn’t know what the gesture meant, but it made her stomach flip. It felt _important_. It felt like it was for _her_ to see.

Beau stepped up to the podium.

“Whaaaat?!” Veth hissed, looking at Jester and Yasha, “Whaat?”

“They know their strengths.” Yasha said, her face glowing with pride, “Just wait and see, Veth.”

“I ask that the crowd refrain from any shouting during this lightning round, as we – the judges – need to hear the answers clearly. As we will not know which answers were correct until the very end.” The host said, before nodding and taking his place between the podiums. Jester curled her hands into the fabric of her skirt. Her eyes darted back and forth between Beau and Essek as the questions were asked and the answers were thrown out.

She let herself look over to Caleb, but his focus was on Beau. His jaw flexed beneath the fluorescent lights. Did that mean they were winning? Or losing? She wished she was sitting closer so she could see more of his expression. The lightning round ended, and Jester let out a loud sigh of relief. Beau and Essek returned to their tables as the judges tallied up the votes.

She picked up her sign, ready to wave it in the air, regardless of if they won or not. A wave of joy washed through her. Beau and Caleb were _amazing_. She was so, so proud of them.

“And the winner is…” A moment of tense silence grew, the anticipation built, and the host pointed at the winning team - “Nicodranas!”

Jester and Veth screamed, as loud as they could, until their lungs burned with it. Their signs held high over their heads and shaking back and forth. Their feet stampeded down the bleachers, rushing toward Caleb and Beau, and as Yasha threw her arms around her girlfriend – Jester launched herself at Caleb.

“Ah!” Caleb’s arms clutched around her waist, stumbling backward, and just barely catching himself from falling over.

Jester squealed, “You did it!” She released him, her cheeks flushed, and eyes bright. Jester looped her arm over Beau’s shoulders and pulled her into a hug. “You were so _fucking cool_!”

“We should go celebrate!” Veth said with an enthusiastic middle finger to the losing team, “Before we have to drive back home.”

“Yeah, why not?” Beau looked at Caleb, “What do you think?”

Caleb pressed both hands to his red cheeks, “Ja, we should eat before we go.”

xXx

Jester gasped as they stepped outside – a flurry of snowflakes drifted down from the darkened sky.

She laughed, spinning in a circle, her boots sliding across the thin layer of snow on the ground. Her breath exhaled in a soft puff of chilled air. It was a _different_ kind of cold. The chill bit her nose and exposed cheeks. Yet, as she breathed in, the air tasted sharp and clear.

It was _beautiful_.

“I’ve never seen snow before.” She looked to see that Caleb was the only one standing with her. The rest of their friends had drifted off to find the car. To arrange for their celebratory dinner. T

She froze as snowflakes clung to her eyelashes and the whisps of curls around her face. Caleb’s lips parted, his jaw and shoulders relaxed, his eyes watching her with fondness. The snow lingered and danced between them beneath a purple, starlit sky. All at once – the memories crashed into her, like an ocean wave meeting the shore.

_I feel seen by him._

“Caleb?” She took a hesitant step toward him. It was as if the world was a snow globe. Crystalline and perfect and a moment away from shattering.

Her hand found his and his fingers were chilled.

Caleb met her eyes, “I was expelled because I got into a fight with one of my teachers.”

Jester’s jaw dropped, “A fight?”

“My friend confided in me about his inappropriate behavior. But I…I saw him afterward and I just…I lost control.” Caleb admitted softly, “I don’t regret it. As I told you before. I wanted you…I just wanted you to know the truth.”

He clasped her hand, tight as if she could anchor him.

“He was here.” He looked back at the impressive, black brick building of Roshoha, “I saw him in the crowd. I almost stormed out…but then I saw you and your brilliant signs…” He swallowed, “and I saw Veth and Yasha and I reminded myself that transferring to Nicodranas was the best thing that could’ve happened to me.”

Caleb’s eyes scanned her face and Jester felt her cheeks go warm beneath his gaze.

“For what it’s worth, I’m glad you transferred, too.” She shifted closer, tilting her face up toward his, “I’m like…really… _really_ glad, Caleb.” She dropped his hand and reached up, her fingertips cradling his jaw, and it was inevitable – what happened next – because it was bound to happen _eventually_.

Because now that she was standing beneath a city made of starlight and obsidian, with snowflakes and glitter sticking to her dress, with the truth laid bare between them, it was so very _obvious_ that he liked her, too.

Their breath misted and mingled in the cold radiance of Xhorhas.

His hands settled on her ribs.

And Jester closed her eyes and pressed her lips to his.

She pulled away with a sharp inhale and a laugh caught in her throat, “ _Oh_.” Her lips tingled. Every nerve in her body went haywire with excitement. A sudden giddiness made her want to laugh and skip through the snow-slick streets.

“Oh?” Caleb pulled her back in, resting his forehead on hers, “Is that a good ‘ _oh’?_ Or a ‘ _you should try again, Widogast oh_ ’?”

“It’s a _– I’ve never been kissed before_ – Oh.”

“Hm.” Caleb hummed, brushing his lips against hers, “We’ll have to remedy that immediately.” He captured her lips once more and Jester wound her arms around his shoulders, pressing and holding her body flush against his, so she was certain he could feel the thunder of her heart against his chest.

xXx

Veth looked over at Beau, tearing her eyes away from Caleb and Jester making out in front of the school, "You owe me five dollars."

Beau exhaled, fishing out her wallet from her baggy jeans, "Damn."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope that you enjoyed this fic :3
> 
> I tried to get it done by Valentine's day, but I wasn't able to. I apologize for any typos. I don't proof-read. Lol.


End file.
